Dead 2020 iMac SSD recovery

[elicash]

My 2020 final intel iMac died on me a week or two ago, and local techs installed a new power supply, but the thing is still a brick.

Nothing they've tried can power it up, and the revive function would ideally would fix a firmware issue hasn't been successful.

My question is, has anyone successfully recovered data from an SSD on this new generation?

My Time Machine disk was full, and I got lazy on buying another. Figures that the one time I'm not regularly backing up data, a machine less than one year in age turns into a brick.

Best suggestion from my Apple repair centre has been to send it to a West Coast data recovery business.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Just to clarify, this is an M1 iMac?

 

[mdgm]

Just to clarify, this is an M1 iMac?

@elicash said it is an in Intel iMac. There was a 27" Intel iMac introduced in 2020 with a T2 chip and storage soldered onto the logic board. Soldering on the storage makes data recovery so much more difficult.

All my Macs have replaceable storage but that will change when I next buy a new Mac.

Backups are even more important when you have a machine where if the machine dies you can't recover the data off the SSD (or certainly not easily).

I suppose they tried a new coin battery just in case the machine had one that somehow failed really early?

 

[synicalx1]

OP, unfortunately that model has soldered on storage. So it's not like a traditional SSD that you can just yank out and throw in a dock to recover the data. I hate that Apple use these especially in desktops where space really isn't an issue.

Apple are probably on the money there - you'll need to get data recovery specialists onto it if you *really* need to get some data off it but that will almost certainly be very very expensive. Still worth contacting them and seeing if they can do a quote on the off-chance its cheaper or simpler to do than expected.

 

[elicash]

@elicash said it is an in Intel iMac. There was a 27" Intel iMac introduced in 2020 with a T2 chip and storage soldered onto the logic board. Soldering on the storage makes data recovery so much more difficult.

All my Macs have replaceable storage but that will change when I next buy a new Mac.

Backups are even more important when you have a machine where if the machine dies you can't recover the data off the SSD (or certainly not easily).

I suppose they tried a new coin battery just in case the machine had one that somehow failed really early?

Sadly they did, the tech was pretty helpful, he spent a few days on it and replaced the power supply right off the bat. Then he moved to the coin battery, the revive attempt, and a bunch of diagnostics that couldn't bring it back.

It's on me for not backing it up for a month or two. I have some serious regret about that now. But I figured the chance of it packing in on me were slim since it is only around 8 months old.

 

[elicash]

OP, unfortunately that model has soldered on storage. So it's not like a traditional SSD that you can just yank out and throw in a dock to recover the data. I hate that Apple use these especially in desktops where space really isn't an issue.

Apple are probably on the money there - you'll need to get data recovery specialists onto it if you *really* need to get some data off it but that will almost certainly be very very expensive. Still worth contacting them and seeing if they can do a quote on the off-chance its cheaper or simpler to do than expected.

Sadly think this is right. A bunch of local (OH based) data recovery places said they can do it no trouble, but wanted the SSD drive only. No-one felt they were capable of getting the drive off the logic board, or at least they didn't want to try.

I'm hopeful it's not too expensive.

Maybe this can serve as a cautionary tale for anyone that has this last intel iMac. I've had a handful of previous generation models, they've all lasted really, really well. Right back to a sage Green G3 back in the day. It's disappointing, but then it wouldn't be nearly as bad as if I'd not potentially lost a couple of months of work. Rookie mistake.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"Best suggestion from my Apple repair centre has been to send it to a West Coast data recovery business."

Was this "Apple repair centre" a brick-n-mortar Apple Store, or was it "3rd-party"?
(non-Apple)

Is this iMac still under warranty?
Do you live in the USA?
If so, why not take it to an Apple Store genius bar?

My prediction:
You're NOT going to get the data back from the internal SSD.
The t2 chip is going to prevent that.

If the drive "is dead", then the computer itself is dead, until the motherboard is replaced.
And you're STILL not getting the data back from the old motherboard, unless Apple has a way to do it. I doubt any 3rd party data recovery firm can get it, either. I could be wrong.

Hmmm... Do you have access to another Mac with USBc?
If so, have you tried "Apple Configurator 2" to revive it?

 

[mj_]

When Apple first started soldering SSD storage onto motherboards with their 2015 generation of MacBooks and 2016 generation of MacBook Pros they included an SSD recovery port that could be used by Apple technicians to access the SSD in cases such as this. Unfortunately, I believe they stopped including that port with their 2018 generation of MacBook Pros and I highly doubt the 2020 iMac would have this port.

 

[elicash]

When Apple first started soldering SSD storage onto motherboards with their 2015 generation of MacBooks and 2016 generation of MacBook Pros they included an SSD recovery port that could be used by Apple technicians to access the SSD in cases such as this. Unfortunately, I believe they stopped including that port with their 2018 generation of MacBook Pros and I highly doubt the 2020 iMac would have this port.

Eventually got this machine over to drive savers who were able to recover lost data.

But there is an issue with the logic board, the SSD and power supply according to them.

That port would have come in handy though, even just in terms of helping with diagnostics at local repair centers.

 

[Anarchy99]

When Apple first started soldering SSD storage onto motherboards with their 2015 generation of MacBooks and 2016 generation of MacBook Pros they included an SSD recovery port that could be used by Apple technicians to access the SSD in cases such as this. Unfortunately, I believe they stopped including that port with their 2018 generation of MacBook Pros and I highly doubt the 2020 iMac would have this port.

they stopped including the lifeboat connector because Apple doesn't do data recovery, AASP's that did it would get kicked out of the program if they got caught offering data recovery services.

they only people I know who did data recovery on that model were Louis rossmann and HDD doctor because almost a year in to the 2016's release 10 or so of those lifeboat adaptors and the required interfacing software got leaked and sold on Ebay before a takedown happened.

as far as im aware other independents who tried to DiY a adapter (including Louis before he bought one, failed)

no sense offering a connector to give false hope.

 

[elicash]

they stopped including the lifeboat connector because Apple doesn't do data recovery, AASP's that did it would get kicked out of the program if they got caught offering data recovery services.

they only people I know who did data recovery on that model were Louis rossmann and HDD doctor because almost a year in to the 2016's release 10 or so of those lifeboat adaptors and the required interfacing software got leaked and sold on Ebay before a takedown happened.

as far as im aware other independents who tried to DiY a adapter (including Louis before he bought one, failed)

no sense offering a connector to give false hope.

This definitely makes sense, and absolutely agree that it's better to kill off false hope.

Interesting on the AASP's getting the flick by offering that service. Now your local Apple store will direct you to AASP businesses run or staffed by former employees who offer data recovery.

I guess there is enough of a demand for it that policy might have changed (or my local store is a little rogue).

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"Eventually got this machine over to drive savers who were able to recover lost data."

I'd like to know how they "got past" the t2 chip to access the drive.

I'm wondering if they managed to get it booted into target disk mode, and then got the data from the drive...?

 

[PBG4 Dude]

OP wrote:
"Eventually got this machine over to drive savers who were able to recover lost data."

I'd like to know how they "got past" the t2 chip to access the drive.

I'm wondering if they managed to get it booted into target disk mode, and then got the data from the drive...?

You only need the T2 chip if FileVault is enabled. Otherwise, the data is unencrypted and can be read off the chip directly. That’s my understanding anyway.

 

[elicash]

You only need the T2 chip if FileVault is enabled. Otherwise, the data is unencrypted and can be read off the chip directly. That’s my understanding anyway.

FileVault wasn't on, so they might have gone that route.

Will be interested in the Apple tech report on this machine.

My dealings with Drivesavers have left me with a bit of a bad taste (they broke my iMac's screen, in a way that shows it was broken when it wasn't mounted on it). Apple tech wrote this on my Apple work order. Drivesavers also used an adhesive tape that left the screen sunken further into the lip on the front so that it's no-where near flush.

They also didn't disclose the broken screen when I was receiving my final bill or organizing return shipping. Discovered it in my local Apple store while removing it from the bubblewrap.